“But they won’t fight. If they wouldn’t take a chance to build a new home, they won’t risk their necks for a war they don’t believe is necessary. I think most of them accept we’re on Earth yet still don’t want to do anything about it. I know you want to save them, but trust me, very few can be.”
She took a step away from Colin. There may be no right answer for their situation. “So, Gwen drops off the radio, I work in the greenhouses, Colin builds things, and Aakil impregnates women. We live out the rest of our lives here, the Colonists stay put, and we leave the State for a later generation to deal with.”
Aakil pushed away from the plant bed. “Freya, I know this isn’t what you want, but you’re forgetting one key point: our lives belong to us now. We can have a good life here. You have Colin and three greenhouses to tinker in. Soon, I’ll have a herd of children. I’m done putting my ass on the line for a bunch of morons who don’t deserve it.”
“Freya,” Colin said, “We can’t do anything now. You can’t make the trip back there. And even if you were healed, we aren’t skilled riders like Gwen. We would only slow everyone down. If you want to make a big speech over the radio, go ahead. But you have to accept the chance that no one will listen.”
Freya rubbed her lips together. “I’m going to drop this, for now. You’re right. I can’t make the trip back there until I’ve fully recovered. But I won’t let this go. Maybe it’s different for me because I never really had the chance to believe we were on an alien planet. Or maybe it’s because I spent more time under the dome than both of you, giving the State time to take even more away from me.”
“Freya,” Colin’s eyes narrowed, “they didn’t just take you away from me. They took my parents. I never got to say goodbye. The last time I saw my mom, we fought. I’ve had to live with that.”
Heat burned through her cheeks, her forehead, and her throat. “At least you didn’t have a hand in their deaths.”
Colin flinched, then turned toward her. “That wasn’t your fault.”
She scoffed. What did he know about it? They had never talked about any of it. All he knew was what Chastity had told him. Freya had tried to bring up the subject, but he quickly steered the conversation in a different direction. Maybe it was too painful for him, or maybe he didn’t want to hear about her life without him.
Part of her wanted to tell him everything. Her close relationship with his mother, Lewis, her plan to take on the High Council, everything. But she didn’t know where to begin. He seemed to just want to start again, not rehash the past.
“The point is, the State has done us all wrong, except my wounds are more recent than everyone else’s. I just don’t want to see us grow complacent and forget about the war.”
“Agreed,” Colin replied, and looked to Aakil.
“Yeah, fine. So, we still have some work to do. But I think we can at least take the rest of the summer off. Let’s sit on our asses and just enjoy ourselves this year. We deserve it.”
Freya knew they had earned a sabbatical, but as she had yet to have that life experience, she was doubtful their summer would pass peacefully.
Chapter 13
Lewis
He held his back more rigid than the wooden chair beneath him. The red light shone above his monitor, indicating it was ready to transmit. This was how these redundant High Council meetings began. They started a conversation without him, while he sat in wait, locked out of their channel.
Part of him wished they would end this practice. There wasn’t enough activity to justify a weekly meeting. He felt they hashed over the same information repetitively.
The meetings’ redundancy annoyed him, but not nearly as much as the true purpose of the meetings. Dr. Rhetta had said he may develop suicidal tendencies in seclusion—these meetings were to ensure he still felt connected to a community. A family.
Spending time with the High Council gives me suicidal tendencies.
He often questioned if his isolation was truly for his safety. They claimed that with nothing to shield him from the common people, he would be at constant risk of assassination in the mountain. Whatever their motives, it didn’t matter. He was glad to be free of them.
His alternative lifestyle had its own set of challenges. Instead of being inundated with constant communications from the department heads, his role as the Head of State had been minimized. His only duty was to air a monthly broadcast to give false reports to their people and attend his weekly meetings with the High Council. His real challenge was how to occupy his mind.
The State House was vacant. All facets of his life were his responsibility, even his laundry. He had recently requested a large bag of rice be delivered, but the rest of his rations came from the garden on the State House grounds.
He continually questioned how much longer the High Council would keep him around. He feared he would actually die of natural causes in his sleep, probably the first Head of State to ever do so.
I want my death to be honorable, meaningful, something other than expiration after a wasted life.
The monitor flickered into activity as the High Council’s faces appeared on the screen.
Lewis feigned a polite smile. “Good afternoon.”
“How is life treating you under the dome?” Devina asked.
Lewis shrugged. “The same.”
“Yes, I imagine your life is dull. I think I would love to take your place when you are gone and enjoy the quiet, all that free time. We have to maintain a full civil duty on top of our High Council duties.”
Lewis forced a fake smile, even though he would like nothing more than then to grip her in the same chokehold he once used on her grandmother.
If you want my job, come and take it. I would give anything to become a commoner. The happiest days of my life were when I pretended to be a commoner with Freya.
“I think my role is more suitable for someone my age. I’m certain I would have retired by now had you not needed someone for such trivial work.”
No matter how much Devina or any other High Council member got under his skin, he never let it show. He would fight to live and to stay in his role for as long as he could. If he was still here, he could continue to fight to give Freya the life she deserved, even though it was too late for him to find happiness.
Devina pursed her lips. “Yes, I suppose I won’t yet be old enough to take your spot when your position opens.”
Lewis furrowed his brow. “Would one of you take my spot? The Head of State is usually former military. Has this policy changed?”
Since they abandoned him in the dome, Lewis had wondered why they needed a Head of State. Surely, there had to be other members of their family. Why bring in someone external at all when the position was a ruse?
“Devina’s remark is merely stating her jealousy for your life. We have not had a policy change, nor do we plan to make one. Just as we did with you, we have a handful of trained personnel, ready to step in when needed. You were our first choice, but not the only one.”
Is the Head of State here just to keep the dream of the dome alive? Or is there another reason for this position?
“But we didn’t come here to discuss our future plans for your position,” the older female continued. “We came here to deliver some very exciting news.”
Lewis raised an eyebrow. “Oh? I wasn’t aware that we had anything scheduled for the next 20 to 30 years.”
Her eyes lit up. “Oh yes, we’ve had a special team of scientists and military personnel collaborating to build a new arsenal. We once again have the firepower to destroy the colony.”
Lewis forced himself to keep his facial expressions neutral. He didn’t expect them to have the firepower again in his lifetime, or Freya’s.
He forced his hands to remain folded in front of him. “That is wonderful news. I’m certain we’ll all rest easier knowing that we have the resources if there is an attack on the dome or the mountain.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Lewis, I can’t shake the fe
eling that you wish for us to turn a blind eye to the colonists.”
Shit. I can’t have them question my loyalties, but I can’t let them kill Freya either.
“Oh, nothing would give me more pleasure than to see those traders burn. I would love to send drones ahead of time and see their faces when they realize they’re on Earth. I have devoted my entire life to removing that perversion from our society. But, this isn’t about me and what I want. I’m more concerned with the survival of our way of life than I am to see a bunch of traders get what’s coming to them.”
“Then why do you hesitate to neutralize them?”
He leaned back casually in his seat. “I don’t want to see us win the battle just to lose the war. Those colonists have survived, but they have not thrived. We see no evidence of migration. Until they do, they have no reason to suspect that they’re anywhere but the colony planet. As long as they think they’re free of us, all of their energies and resources will be devoted to building amenities and agricultural practices. They pose no threat to us.”
She pursed her lips, displaying a deep collection of wrinkles around her lips. “And you feel we should sit back and continue to stock explosives for several generations.”
“Stockpile, yes. Sit back, no. Let’s use drones and get much more aggressive to find these other surviving groups.”
“We have looked,” Devina cut in. “It’s like searching for a needle in a haystack.”
“Then create more drones. We should keep one reserve of bombs for the dome, one for the mountain—”
“The mountain is impenetrable. They pose no threat to us.”
Lewis licked his dry lips. “Perfect. That’s one less we need in reserve. As I was saying, one to protect the dome, one to neutralize the colony, and we continually make more. Then each time we find a new one of these stealthy groups, we confidently neutralize them with supplies to spare.”
“Lewis,” Devina began, “There have always been surviving tribes. If they haven’t attacked us yet, they won’t. I think you are overreacting to them. We have neutralized groups in the past who built up their cities into something sizable, something that could pose a threat, but these others can’t be more than nomads.”
“And you think these groups who have remained hidden aren’t aware of that? I think those people are a hell of a lot smarter than any of you are prepared for. Let’s get prepared.”
Silence radiated through the monitor. After an interminable pause, the oldest of the High Council spoke. “You have raised a valid concern and spoken well. I think we should put this topic to a vote. All in favor of Lewis’s plan to postpone the bombing while we focus our efforts on finding other surviving tribes, raise your hand.”
Lewis’ face blanched as he held his breath, seeing hands slowly lift into the air. Two High Council members kept their hands in their laps, but he didn’t need their vote to form a majority. They would move forward with the search for other surviving tribes.
If Freya was still alive, she would remain safe. For now.
Chapter 14
Freya
Colin came to a halt. “This is it.”
“This is what?”
He turned to face her, then started walking backwards into the open space. “This is where we’ll build our next row of houses. In this hill, right here.”
Freya looked around, trying to figure out exactly what he had finished. The hill was just a hill, like any other. But as she knew little about construction, she simply smiled and nodded. “It looks nice.”
Colin laughed and grabbed her hand. “Come on, let’s take a closer look.”
They started climbing the hill, and she soon realized it was much deeper than it appeared from a distance. They weren’t yet at the top, but Freya could clearly see a straight line of brown in the grass, spanning the length of the hill.
“What’s this for?” She kneeled down, running her fingers down the groove.
Colin crouched beside her. “This marks where we dig. It’s going to take us most of the summer just to move the soil; it’ll be awhile before we build anything.”
“Wow.” Her jaw hung open. “Do we have the labor for this? This is quite the undertaking.”
“It is, but we need to do it. Either Gwen will get lucky at the colony, or Aakil really will have 100 kids. Maybe both. There is no benefit to delaying construction.”
She pursed her lips. “I hear sleeping on the floor is a great motivator for everyone to work hard.”
Colin smiled. “Indeed. It really was. So, I figure we should get started before our houses get cramped. Moving dirt is exhausting, but anyone can do it. Even you.”
She crossed her arms. “But who will care for the greenhouses if I help dig?”
Colin laughed. “I didn’t say you had to work up here, but you could. I think it’s time for Aakil to get to work on something other than making babies.”
Freya laughed. “He’s taken his new role very seriously. I don’t get the impression he wants another.”
“Well, unfortunately for him, he has a reality check coming. There are a lot of men just like him back at the colony. I bet when they hear so many women here are unattached, they’ll come running over that mountain. Once they get here, I bet the numbers balance out better.”
They wandered off toward the dining area in the grove of trees.
“Maybe when they arrive,” Freya said, “the competition will make Aakil work so he can keep up his muscular physique.”
“Yeah. Maybe it will be us happily coupled men who have time to sit around.”
They walked back in silence for a few moments before Freya said, “That was fascinating. Would you like to see what I’ve been up to in the greenhouse now?”
Colin stopped walking. “I see what you’re up to in there every freaking day.”
She giggled and nudged him with her shoulder. “This definitely isn’t the life we imagined, but I think it will be a good one.”
Colin looked at her sideways. “I agree with you, but I hear in your voice a whole other side to that remark.”
Freya looked away. “Well, what option do we have? Until someone comes up with an idea, our war efforts against the State are at a standstill. I don’t like that our grand plan is to save this problem for the next generation or later, but I can’t think of anything. I feel like we just need to accept our fate and settle in here.” She looked over at the grove of trees in the distance and saw people filtering in for their evening meal. “We should get to dinner.”
Colin tugged on her arm to lag back with him. “I know what you mean, and maybe your mentality of settling in is a healthy approach. We aren’t exactly young anymore. Besides, it’s not just us anymore. We have others who can help.”
“I know.” She nodded. “We’ve got here, the colony and the group by the dome.”
“Exactly. And those people in Hope, they’ve got some of our own people living with them—people my parents liberated from the dome. Someone has to know something, see something, or think of something. I think we’ve both earned a break. I’m sure someone in Hope will find the answer.”
“I hope you’re right.” She squeezed his hand.
He pulled her close, planting a kiss on her forehead as he wrapped his arms around her. “It’s all going to work out. But for tonight, how about we get something to eat and then spend the night in, just the two of us?”
She nodded into his chest. “That’s what we do every night.”
He pulled back slightly. “I know. I like it.”
She giggled. “Me too.”
While keeping an arm casually draped around her, they walked toward the public dining area.
Just before they arrived, Colin froze.
“What’s wrong?”
“Shhh.” He held a finger to his lips, cocking his head to the side. “Do you hear that?”
She narrowed her eyes. “People talking?”
He let go of her hand and took a few cautious steps away. “There’s a buzzin
g sound.”
As soon as he said it, she could hear it. “Yeah. It’s kind of like bees.”
Colin stepped further back from the grove. “Kind of, but the pitch is too high for bees or wasps.”
“Hey, Colin,” Aakil shouted from inside the dining area. “Come sit with me! You’ve got to meet my new friend—”
“Get over here,” Colin barked.
There was something in his tone that made her skin blanch.
He’s freaked out.
“Freya, take cover. Get under a table.” He stepped closer to the tables. “Everyone, be quiet!”
Delivered: A Young Adult Dystopian Romance (The State Series Book 7) Page 9
